A delegation of Journalists in Social Protection (JISOP) has called on key institutions to focus on issues of social protection.
The courtesy calls were to formally introduce JISOP to the institutions and establish a working relation towards a direct line of communication on social protection.
JISOP, within five days, called on the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), Deutsche Welle (DW), Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) Programmes Secretariat and the Ghana School Feeding Programme Secretariat.
It also called on United Nations (UN) institutions such as the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), World Bank, World Health Organisation (WHO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Food Programme (WFP) as well as the International Labour Organistion (ILO).
There were dialogues among the representatives of the institutions and the journalists to solicit collaborations, which underscored the essence of the meetings.
Madam Emma Anaman, Head of Social Protection at WFP, during the engagement, said the gesture was commendable given the influence of news reports on social protection issues.
She reiterated the importance of JISOP as a team that delved into the issues of social protection, adding it was a step to give the subject the needed attention.
Mr Achaligabe Colson Akanbasiam, Head of Communication, LEAP Secretariat, expressed the Secretariat’s readiness to work with JISOP towards an enhanced social protection conversation in the interest of the public.
He noted that there was misinformation about the LEAP programme contrary to its activities, adding that liaising with JISOP would facilitate effective communication between the programme and members of the public.
JISOP, launched last year, is an independent network of journalists from various media houses trained to report on social protection.
It is a stakeholder in the Right Based Approach (RBA) to the social protection agenda of Ghana under the UNICEF’s social protection strategy and coordinated by the Justice Baidoo Consulting Limited (JBCL).
The members were drawn across all regions in the country and grouped into the Northern, Middle, and Southern zones.
